Singer-Songwriter Ken Gaines
By: Heath Vercher |
Sunday February 10, 2008 |
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Houston TX Alum |
| Ken Gaines is a staple in the Houston singer-songwriter community, and has been doing his thing around this area for over twenty years. He is an old soul, and a staple at the Kerrville Folk Festival and other events such as the Southwest Regional Folk Alliance. He has hosted Anderson Fair, a listening room here in Houston, for many years, and generally enjoys what he does.
I had a chance to sit down with the man and the legend recently and pick his brain about some of his songwriting techniques and talk one-on-one about music from his two CDs, Real Men and Catfish Moon. Here we are at Inversion Coffee House, with Ken Gaines, and there's nothing like coffee and singer-songwriters to get the blood flowing, so why don't you tell me what it is you do sir. Ken Gaines: Well, I'm a singer-songwriter, I write my songs, play guitar, and play my music everywhere not only here locally in Houston, but everywhere across the country. That's pretty much been my goal. Ok, cool. Well, why don't we start with a little biography information. How'd you get started doing all this? How long have you been doing this? Quiet awhile, eh? Yeah. I probably had my first paying gig at fifteen. That was forty-one years ago. I should be better than I am, actually. Well, I know you're a staple around here and you've toured all over the place haven't you? What's the farthest out you've been? I've pretty much covered most of the continental United States. Haven't played much in Canada, and I lived in Germany and the UK for a time, but never played there much professionally. Although, that first gig I was telling you about I did play in Germany. That was when I was fifteen. Well, I've been a fan for a couple of years, and you have two CDs out. You have “Real Men” and “Catfish Moon.” Let's talk about song of the songs from each of those albums. Why don't we start with “Real Men.” When was that recorded? That was recorded in 2001 over about a period of eighteen months. Yeah, that sounds about right. I had to quit for awhile due to some other things, I think it was mostly Kerrville, but I ended up coming back to it and scrubbing the whole thing. And I'm very glad I did. I have quite a few songs on there that I really enjoy. And I've been dying to ask you, what's the story behind “Music of the Moon,” because that song is killer. I think that has a lot to do with a fantasy image, mostly with things like these festivals. Kerrville, you know. There are a lot of your other singer friends, that you only see out there at that time, year after year, so you mix that up with all this music and primal energy going and sooner or later there's going to be a nice full moon. I think it's those images that were the start for that, and other than that I just always try to write myself into an interesting story. One of my favorites. Now, how about “Real Men.” That one was written for your dad, right? Let's talk about that one for a bit. Yeah, yeah, that's right. Actually I wrote that song while I was writing music for a children's theatre. We were writing these shows for children, and most of the songs at the time were based on biblical stories, and we were writing a show called “Noah and the Ark.” And my co-writer was also the creative director, and he and I were having an argument about a particular song that we were both working on. The song was just going on and on and on, so I basically had to say, “Look here's the framework.” I tried to show him that you could cut a lot out and still get a lot said for the kids. I took what we were doing musically and wrote “Real Men.” A lot of the song was based on a poem I had written for a group I used to get together with in San Antonio. So I had these lyrical ideas, these couplets, in a list form, so I could just say ‘real men..' and do anything with it. You get a lot said, and I wrote that song with that interesting little bridge in there to give it some variety. And I got a good song out of it. Also, “Let it Rain,” that is from “Real Men,” too. Love that song. Talk about that one. I was just going through a period in my life where I was cutting bonds and going through radical changes, and I was literally driving back from Kerrville in the rain, and the seeds of that song started. And I realized that I was just not being true to myself. I was trying to stay dry and out of the rain, and true to an image that a lot of other people have of you. But I had to change that, so I decided I had to get wet. Right on, right on. Moving on, let's talk about “Catfish Moon.” Personally I think every song on that CD is a hit. Let's talk about “Pool.” My favorite song. Hands down. That's an old song. I wrote that one, interestingly enough, mostly while driving. Most of it was written driving on the New York freeway. It was back in 1988, I believe. I was going to New York City to visit a friend, and we'd hang out in some pretty serious pool halls that were in the area. It was up in Ithaca, New York, and it was probably the best that I ever shot pool. Also the movie “The Hustler” is one of my favorite movies, so there are so references in there to Minnesota Fats. Well I could talk about every song on that album, so let's talk about “Blue Northern.” What's up with that one? That one's actually inspired me to write something similar. Well, you know with that one, I realized that I needed to write another damn love song, but not necessarily one with a happy ending. Or in that case I think it's a neutral ending. But, I based those lyrics on another idea that I had but I can't remember the actual lyrics. It was about a woman with blue eyes of some sort, but I had just read that and was working with that little musical variation on some themes I do. You know, like with Biloxi or others with a two-step feel. But I just had that in mind, and .. Oh now I remember. If you get a chance to listen to Sailor White, musically some of the things he was doing I was imitating from him. Oh, how about “Einstein's Violin?” That's a great song. I remember the house concert I went to, you talked about that one. I had no idea Einstein had played the violin, or was much less a musician. What's your take? I was fascinated with Einstein for a long time, and real men of genius in general. Da Vinci for example. But I'd been reading a lot of Einstein at that time, and somewhere in all of that reading the phrase ‘Einstein's violin' jumped out at me as something to wrap a song around, and at the same time I was maturing as a person, in love, and once again it was about time I wrote another love song. But this one had an adult theme, a true adult theme. I think as you develop in love and a relationship you've got to go somewhere with it, or away from it, and fall in love again. Those were the two things that were going on in my mind and I put them together and that song tumbled out the way I wished most songs would, because it was pretty mysterious. It's like I was tapped in. Ken, I do appreciate your time today. Thanks for catching some coffee and telling me a little about what it is you do. That's going to wrap it up for us, here. If you get the chance, check out Ken Gaines, he's probably coming to a house concert near you! |
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